


HEMS Love

by nic_d



Category: Richard Armitage - Fandom, The Golden Hour (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-19
Updated: 2021-01-19
Packaged: 2021-03-17 21:55:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 14,381
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28856196
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nic_d/pseuds/nic_d
Summary: This is a piece I have just found that I wrote approx. 10-12 years ago.It follows on from The Golden Hour Series on TV and sees the HEMS Team employ a nurse to join the team. Having ended his relationship with his colleague Jane, Dr Alec Track is trying even harder to avoid love and relationships but he soon finds his newest recruit getting under his skin.
Relationships: Alec Track/Original Female Character(s)





	HEMS Love

CHAPTER 1 

Dr Alec Track climbed the five steps to his front door. The helicopter medical team he led had been called out seventy-five minutes before the end of their shift and as a result he was late getting home. Opening the front door he considered what he had in his fridge, he recalled seeing cheese, eggs, a couple of mouldy looking carrots and two bottles of beer when he had put the remains of his milk away this morning and he let out a low groan as he realised that he would either have to go to the supermarket to get food or walk down to one of the take-away outlets as there was nothing there to quell his hunger. 

As if sensing the situation, his stomach growled loudly and Alec turned slamming the front door shut. Going left at the bottom of his steps Alec moved towards the take-away outlets, he looked at his watch and knew he would have to be quick if not the outlets would be closed. Alec entered the first he reached, a pizza place.

“Hi Alec” Matthew the shop owner called out from behind the serving counter “late night again?”  
“Yeah, mountain biking accident out in the valley, no chance of a land ambulance getting there, luckily nothing too serious though.”

Alec ordered a pizza without looking at the menu, as he waited he picked up the local paper but regretted doing so immediately, the front page told the story of the five vehicle accident on the motorway last week. Alec and his team had attended but despite their best efforts a 9 year old boy had died at the scene as a result of his injuries and the boy’s face was staring out of the page at him. The boy’s mother was in the hospital intensive care unit in a coma unaware that her son had died. Alec put the paper down and rubbed his hands over his face, he would go home, eat the pizza and then get into the shower before getting into bed, he was due back at work at 7:30 in the morning and he knew there was a mountain of paper-work waiting on his desk.

Fifteen minutes later Alec was walking back to his house holding the cardboard box containing his food in his right hand. The thought of eating it wasn’t appealing but his stomach rumbled again reminding him that since his cereal this morning all Alec had eaten was a packet of crisps and three chocolate bars, a great diet for a doctor. 

Today he had spent the morning looking through the applications for the two nurse positions within the helicopter medical team making his comments on whom he thought would be suitable to attend an interview in a couple of weeks. Alec had been hesitant about recruiting nurses to the team, there were some very good nurses in the A&E department who had applied, but he was uncertain how they would cope at the scene of the accident with only the equipment they carried rather than being able to find anything that was needed as they did in the A&E area. There had also been applications from nurses who didn’t work within the hospital at which the team was based.

Alec heard a car approaching at speed, far faster than the 30 mile per hour limit of the road but he could not see it yet. He muttered under his breath, speed was, in his opinion a major cause of vehicle accidents. Alec saw the bright headlights of the approaching car, at the same time out of the corner of his left eye he noticed the bicycle being ridden along the road. The car rounded the bend on the wrong side of the road.

“Look out” Alec yelled concerned that the cyclist would be hit by the speeding vehicle.

The car streamed past and Alec searched the road for the bicycle, he spotted it promptly lying on the side of the road and Alec dashed across the road to where it lay. Sitting in the hedge was the cyclist.

“Are you OK? Are you hurt?” Alec asked with concern in his voice.

“I’m fine I think” replied a soft feminine voice, surprising Alec. “Thanks to you for yelling out to me, I thought the hedge was safer than the road.”

Alec laid the pizza box on the floor. “Can you get up? Don’t move if anything hurts” he instructed.

The figure in the hedge gingerly rose to her feet, brushing leaves from her dark grey jogging bottoms as she did so. Alec observed the cyclist who appeared to be about five foot three inches tall and very slim. He could just about see her dark curls escaping from the sides and bottom of her helmet. The cyclist swayed and Alec offered a hand to help her steady herself, she accepted gripping his hand but winced as she tried to move as pain shot through her left thigh.

“Where does it hurt? Let me see” Alec put his arm around the cyclist and carefully led her across the road to the path where the lighting was better. He helped her to sit on the path worried that she had injured herself

“I’m OK” came the reply, but tears were starting to gather as the shock of the incident struck the cyclist and Alec heard the tears in her throat. “I’m fine, really. Just give me a minute.”

“My house is just around the corner, you can call someone from there if you like and check you are not injured” Alec offered.

“No, No, I can manage to get home” the cyclist stood hastily and started to move towards her bicycle lying on the side of the road.

Alec had heard the anxiety alongside the tears in her throat in that response and felt a fool for offering to take her to his house. What had he been thinking? A suggestion like that could leave him open to all sorts of accusations and could potentially damage his reputation and career.  
The sound of sobbing drew Alec’s attention back to the cyclist who was now trying to pick up her bicycle. 

Alec walked over, “Do you need any help with that?” There seemed to be a long silence although it was only seconds before the sobbing ascended into great big heaving sobs and Alec felt a pair of arms surround his waist. He let the cyclist cling to him but did not offer reassurance by holding her to him, he left his arms by his side and waited for the crying to subside. As a result of his job Alec often encountered people in distress, either because they were injured or because they had lost a loved one but rarely was he in the position to offer comfort. When he treated an injured person at a scene of an incident he had been called to he was professional, dealing with the injuries and offering words of reassurance as necessary. If he spoke with a relative at the hospital base he could rely on one of the nurses to provide a calm soothing haven of support alongside tissues and a cup of tea leaving him free to leave the room and the distraught relative. 

The cyclist gathered her composure and released her hold on Alec. She looked up at him.  
“Sorry” she mumbled, “I don’t normally throw myself onto men.” She offered a small smile and stepped backwards. 

“Its OK, you’ve had a shock. Are you sure you aren’t injured?” The professional in Alec returned who was surprised that he felt the loss of her arms from around his middle. 

“Just a few bruises I think, but I’ll make sure there is nothing serious when I get home.” She bent again and grabbed the bicycle’s handlebars. Alec stooped too and pulled the bike into an upright position.

Alec glanced over the bicycle, “No damage here that I can see” he said letting go of his hold on it.

“Thank you, ummm?” The cyclist looked at Alec with an inquiring expression.

“Alec, Alec Track” he answered.

“Thank you Alec Track, I’m Lara. Sorry I‘ve spoiled your evening” He raised an eyebrow. “You definitely stopped me having a more serious accident this evening and I repay you with a wet shirt and a cold dinner” she pointed at a wet patch that Alec hadn’t noticed on his shirt before looking down at the pizza box on the floor.

“Don’t worry about it, I’m glad you weren’t injured and anyway I like cold pizza, I eat enough of it” he muttered the last sentence so that she couldn’t hear it. A small giggle escaped Lara’s lips. She picked up the pizza and handed it to Alec.  
He accepted the box and watched as Lara got onto her bicycle tentatively. She turned to face him again, gave a small smile and started to pedal away, leaving Alec standing on the side of the road holding a pizza box.

CHAPTER 2

The following four weeks were moderately busy for the team but the thought of new staff, even if they were nurses had helped get the team through their work. They had been called out to numerous road traffic crashes, a fire at a hotel, a schoolboy with neck and back injuries sustained in a rugby match and only yesterday to a horse rider whose horse had been startled throwing her to the ground seriously injuring her pelvis and legs. 

Today was the day of the interviews for those 2 positions on the team and Alec was on the interview panel alongside the A&E Matron Carol White and someone from the HR department. He checked in with his team at the helicopter base and told them to page him if they needed anything before making his way to the room in the hospital training centre that had been allocated for the interviews. 

Six nurses had been invited for interview, as Alec and his two colleagues waited for the last candidate they had chosen no-one to join the team. The candidates they had interviewed just weren’t suitable. Alec had had hopes for the only male nurse to apply, but Alec struggled to see him fitting into the team and then the interviewee had confessed that he didn’t like flying and he had effectively quashed any chance he had of joining the helicopter medical team. Alec had bit his tongue at that comment, how could you apply for a position on the HEMS team if you didn’t like flying.

There was a knock on the door which opened to reveal the receptionist who announced the last interviewee had arrived and that she would send her through in two minutes. Alec glanced at the application form in front of him to see that this candidate had recently moved to the area and was currently not working except for some occasional work in a local nursing home. She had moved from the South West where she had worked in the A&E department of a large teaching hospital, working closely with the HEMS team as required including attending the scene of an incident if additional support was required. Alec perked up at the prospect of a candidate who might be suitable to join his team.

A light knock on the door signalled her arrival, Alec stood to greet the interviewee, his breath caught in the back of his throat as she entered the room and recognition dawned on Alec. He looked at the application form again and the name Lara Westwell stared out of the page at him. Before him stood the cyclist he had helped four weeks ago. She had a similar look of fear on her face as she had had that night, the only difference that Alec noticed was that her dark curls were now visible instead of restrained under a cycle helmet although they were pinned back at the sides and she wore a suit rather than jogging bottoms and a jumper. 

Alec had had visions of those curls in his dreams, something that disturbed him because he always put his job first and only allowed romance into his life when he had time. That was rarely. He had dated Jane, a fellow medic on his team for a while, but it had been a fairly casual arrangement on his part. When she had wanted more from him he had been unable to commit to her and they had decided that they should just call it a day to maintain their work relationship. Jane was now in a new relationship and Alec thought this might be the reason he had seen Lara and her curls in his dreams.

Matron Carol White’s introduction of Alec to Lara brought Alec from his thoughts and he held out his hand to Lara. She took his hand and shook it, firmly he noted, and offered a small reserved smile. The interview appeared to be over quickly but Alec was happy with the responses to the questions that Lara had given.  
Impulsively because he wanted to keep Lara in the room a few minutes longer Alec asked “If we offer you a position on the team, when would you be able to start?”

Lara looked down at her tightly clasped hands before looking at Alec. “I have a few things that I need to sort out following my move here but I should be able to start in a fortnight if I choose to accept an offer that is made” she responded.

Alec suppressed a chuckle, she certainly had a mind of her own and he found himself wanting to know more about Lara Westwell.

Twenty four hours later, Alec was relieved to hear that Lara Westwell had accepted the offer of a position on the helicopter emergency medical team as a nurse and that she would be starting the job within the next two weeks subject to a satisfactory medical at the occupational health department, he shared the news with his team and was enlightened to find that they too were looking forward to welcoming a new team member. Alec listened to his colleagues discussing the imminent arrival as he sat at his desk looking at the data relating to the HEMS team for the previous month. They had attended 22 incidents in the past month including 14 road traffic crashes, Alec wished he could do something about this figure, but there was little he could do except allow the helicopter team to attend all of the incidents that were deemed appropriate and to try to save lives when they were called into action. 

As if sensing his thoughts, Alec’s pager beeped at him, he stood quickly and found that Dr’s Naz Osbourne and Paul Keane were grabbing the bags with the equipment they carried. Paul thrust a bag at Alec as he wouldn’t be flying this time. Alec handed him the pager in case something else came in that they would be required to attend, in which case Paul would take the car.

“What have we got?” Alec enquired of his pilot.

“A hang glider has crash landed in fields just outside Rickmansworth, leg and chest injuries.” 

“What’s our flying time? He asked.

“Seven minutes.” Alec looked at his watch, before responding, “Let’s get airbourne then.”

CHAPTER 3

Ten days later.  
Lara walked through the door of the HEMS team office on her first day and hesitated. Naz Osbourne spotted her and walked over to speak to her and was followed by Kurt the pilot who also welcomed her to the team.

Hearing the conversations taking place, Alec left his office and went to greet Lara. He introduced the team and was about to suggest he show her around when Jane interrupted and offered to show Lara the facilities. Lara smiled at Jane and said “Thanks, that’ll be great.”  
Alec returned to his office wondering why he had even considered offering to show Lara around. His relationship with Jane was cordial, but had been strained since their relationship had ended and Alec had vowed never to get involved with a colleague again. In fact he didn’t have time for a relationship at the moment, he had worked hard to get to the position he was in and he wasn’t going to throw that away.

Lara wasn’t part of the flying team on her first day and spent time completing paperwork and also spent some time in A&E with Carol White, the matron who had interviewed her so that she could meet some of the hospital colleagues she would encounter. She was standing in the resuscitation area with Carol when the call came through to say that the HEMS team were returning with a 47 yr old male who had crashed his lorry into a wall to avoid a more serious accident.

The room quickly filled with nurses who were pulling on green plastic aprons and gloves whilst also gathering pieces of equipment.  
“Should I help?” Lara enquired.  
Carol thrust an apron and gloves into Lara’s hands and smiled. “Welcome to The London.”

Lara heard Alec before she saw him round a corner and enter the Resuscitation area with the patient. He was giving instructions and everyone continued to listen to him and act on his directives as the patient was connected to monitors and drips. Alec demanded x-rays which were quickly taken and Lara was taking the blood samples Alec had requested when an anaesthetist and a surgeon walked in. Alec briefed them on the situation, he could now step away, his team had done their part and had got the man to the hospital within an hour of his accident which was their main aim. 

Alec was heading to the door when he heard the anaesthetist say “Well hello, what have we here, a new nurse Matron?”

Alec turned to see the anaesthetist run a hand up Lara’s back. He hadn’t spotted her when he had been standing there which initially pleased him as he didn’t want her to distract him from his job. He had vowed to himself only this morning not to get involved with her, he wasn’t interested in a relationship. But now he felt anger that someone else was touching her.

“Not one of mine Bob” Carol responded, “Lara is part of Alec’s team.”  
“You’re the new nurse then?” he asked Lara.

Lara was about to speak when Alec announced “Yes, Lara is my new nurse.”  
He was standing right behind her and the anaesthetist dropped his hand from Lara’s back which pleased Lara as she hadn’t liked him touching her.  
She noticed that Alec was much taller than the other man and although she couldn’t see his muscles under his orange flight suit she knew he had a better body.

Lara was taken aback that she was thinking about Alec and his body. Her mind drifted back to their initial meeting and how she had flung herself at him when the shock on falling into the hedge had consumed her. 

Alec announcing that they were heading back to the HEMS office snapped Lara out of her daydream. Alec also thanked Carol for meeting with Lara and then turned to leave the room. Lara smiled at Carol and then quickly turned to follow. They walked in silence to the lift, Alec punched the button.

“I was only trying to help in there, I’m sorry” Lara offered fearing that Alec was angry with her. Alec glared at her but failed to respond, the lift door opened and they entered the lift. Alec inserted a key which allowed the lift to travel to the HEMS floor and pushed the button for that floor. As the lift started to move he looked at Lara and said “I know you were trying to help, I didn’t realise you were there if not I wouldn’t have left you in that situation.”  
“What situation?” she asked, unsure what Alec was referring to.  
“With Bob, who thinks he is irresistible to all women. He’ll try anything to get you into bed and what you do in your own time is your business but during work hours I won’t have him flirting with you. We are here to save lives.”

Lara chuckled. Alec glared back at her “it’s not a laughing matter” he declared.  
Lara stopped laughing concerned that she would offend her new boss on her first day.  
“Thank you for your concern Doctor, but I am capable of looking after myself” she responded. “Anyway, he’s not my type so you don’t have to worry about any flirting on my part.”

The lift doors opened and Lara marched out in front of Alec and headed towards the office door. She wasn’t looking for a relationship in fact it was the furthest thought in her head, her move to London had come about because her heart had been broken.  
She had returned home from her job as an A&E nurse early one day feeling unwell to find her fiancé of 2 years in bed with her best friend. After much shouting Lara had learnt that they had been seeing each other for almost the entire time of her engagement so Lara had thrown her ring at her fiancé and demanded he leave her house taking all of his possession within 3 hours. He had pleaded forgiveness but Lara wasn’t prepared to take another chance and actually realised that although this had devastated her he had not been the man for her, the man that would make her happy forever.

Lara had tried to get on with her life but it hadn’t been easy and so she had decided to move if only for a year. She had rented out her house on the South West Coast and had moved to London to be near her parents. She found a small flat to rent in a nice area and had found work easily in care homes whilst she looked for something more permanent. It had been her father who had shown her the advert for the HEMS Nurse job in one of the national newspapers and after a couple of glasses of wine she had sent her CV and a completed application form on her fathers computer thinking she wouldn’t even be short listed. 

She had been surprised to be offered an interview but she had been even more shocked at seeing the man who had called out to her and stopped her being injured by an erratic driver as she cycled home from a shift at a care home. She was more stunned to find that he was the HEMS Consultant and would therefore be her boss if she was offered a job. She didn’t know what she had said in the interview she had been concentrating on breathing. He was a good looking guy and she had flung herself into his arms on that night, and she had felt safe. 

CHAPTER 4

Lara walked into the HEMS office to find Dr Jane Cameron coming out of the ladies changing room freshly showered. Naz was sitting on a sofa wearing a t-shirt and jeans playing on the games console.  
On seeing Lara and Alec enter the room Naz announced “so are we off to the pub to welcome Lara officially to the team?”  
“Oh course” replied Alec with a smile.  
Paul Keane appeared from the men’s changing room and told Alec the shower was free for him to use before they went to the pub. Lara excused herself to freshen up in the ladies. She wasn’t sure about socialising with her colleagues, they would ask questions she wasn’t ready to answer, questions about where she had come from, and why she was here, but she wanted to be friends with them, so she freshened herself up and changed out of the orange suit.

Fifteen minutes later the six crew members were sitting in the corner of the local pub which Lara realised was a regular haunt for the team as the others had all been greeted by name and she had been welcomed to the pub and to the team by the landlord. Glasses were raised to welcome Lara to the team and after a few mouthfuls had been taken, the questions started.  
Naz was first, “so Lara, where are you staying?” he asked.  
Lara placed her drink on the table and answered. “I’m renting in SW19”  
“Any spare room, I’m looking for somewhere to stay” Naz remarked.  
Lara smiled, “sorry only one bedroom and I’m not looking to share before you suggest it.”

“That’s not a London accent you have Lara, where have you moved from” Kurt queried.  
Lara took another sip of wine. “I’m from a village outside of Barnstaple.”  
“That’s a lovely part of the country” Jane declared “such a nice coastline and there are some lovely restaurants too.”

Lara knew the next logical question would be to ask why she moved but she wasn’t ready for Alec to ask her.  
“What made you move from such a lovely part of the country to the big city then Lara?” he asked.  
Lara looked down at her drink, before picking it up and taking another sip. She took a breath.  
“I’d rather not say at the moment, to many memories, but it involves a man” Lara looked down at her drink again.  
“Sorry, we’re asking too many questions, why don’t you ask us some questions now” Alec encouraged. 

The six of them sat in the pub chatting for over two hours and much to her relief there weren’t any more difficult questions or ones that she wanted to avoid asked of Lara. Although it wasn’t mentioned directly, Lara was able to pick up that Alec and Jane had been in a relationship but weren’t together any longer. In fact Jane was the first to leave to meet her new boyfriend for dinner. Kurt the team pilot left soon after so that he could be home in time for dinner with his wife and son leaving Lara with Paul, Naz and Alec. 

Paul finished his pint and looked at his watch. “I’d love to stay and continue chatting, but I think I’m going to head home” he announced. He looked at Naz pointedly “are you coming or what?”  
Naz looked at him and grinned, “If you’ll have me I’m coming” and he quickly drank the remains of his pint of lager.  
They both stood said goodbyes to Alec and Lara and left the pub.  
“Naz is having marital issues” Alec whispered across the table. “He has been sleeping in the office if no-one offers him a bed for the night.”  
“Oh” was all Lara could reply as she was looking into Alec’s blue eyes and was starting to feel light-headed and it wasn’t as a result of the 2 glasses of wine she had drunk.  
She quickly looked away before he realised she was staring.  
“I’m sorry I asked why you moved earlier, it’s none of my business, I hope I didn’t make you uncomfortable.”  
Lara sighed and then looked at Alec. “No you didn’t make me uncomfortable and I knew someone would ask, it’s just” Lara’s voice started to wobble as tears threatened to fall, she was tired following her first day and the pain of the betrayal by her fiancé and her best friend was still fresh even though it had been five months ago that she had found them.

Lara needed to get out before she cried in front of Alec, drinking wine hadn’t been such a good idea after all. She picked up her bag, excused herself and dashed to the pub door. Tears were starting to run down her cheek as she reached the door, she opened it and turned left to head towards the tube station. She was about to step off of the pavement to cross the road when she heard a car horn sound, making her jump. She was grabbed from behind by a pair of strong hands and found herself looking at Alec Track’s shirt as he held her against him.  
“Careful” Alec declared, “what sort of Doctor would I be to let one of my team get themselves injured after their first day.”

Lara tried to laugh but a funny sound escaped her mouth and her tears fell harder. Alec guided her along the path, she had no idea where she was going but she felt safe with his arm around her. She soon found herself sitting on a bench in a small green area which she realised quickly was behind the hospital. Alec sat beside her but said nothing.

“You probably regret employing me now” Lara said. “That’s twice you’ve stopped me from having a serious accident and twice I’ve cried on you. I promise I’m not normally like this.”  
“No worries” replied Alec. “I doubt I will regret employing you when you have settled into the team and are helping to save lives. But you’ve had a big move and you obviously have your reasons for that and it’s all a bit stressful as well as starting a new job with people you don’t know” he responded.

Lara looked at him, she truly felt safe and knew instinctively that she could trust Alec Track. She found herself telling him the whole story behind her move.  
“I can understand why you moved, and I won’t mention this to anyone.” Alec paused a second before saying “I’m only asking as a colleague, but would you like to get some food or can I walk you to the tube?”  
Lara smiled, “food would be nice, I take it you know somewhere locally?”

CHAPTER 5

Lara’s first month flew by and she quickly established herself as part of the team. The one thing she noticed though was that Alec often stayed at the base and she was out with Paul and Jane a lot. Alec had been true to his word and the others knew nothing about her reasons for moving although Lara had become good friends with Jane and had offered titbits of information around her reasons for moving in their various conversations.  
She walked into the office on a Wednesday morning and announced “I want to thank you all for making me so welcome in the team, and I would like you all to come to dinner on Friday night after work at my house - no excuses accepted.”  
“Alright” declared Naz “you can count me in, home cooked food woohoo.”  
Paul looked at him in disgust “If you don’t like my cooking you know what you can do.” This started a discussion between Paul and Naz about the definition of cooking with Naz declaring putting a dish in the microwave and then onto a plate didn’t constituting cooking as such but he had no problems with Paul’s menus at all.

Jane and Lara laughed at them, “count me in too” Jane yelled as she ran to answer the phone. Kurt offered his apologies as he was going away for the weekend with his family but thanked Lara for the invitation and said he would attend if there was a next time.  
“What about you boss” Lara enquired of Alec.  
“If you’re sure you want to then I’ll be there” he answered.  
Lara grinned “great, I hope you all like Lasagne.”

Alec had tried to avoid spending time with Lara since they had shared the meal after her first day. As they had sat eating in a Chinese restaurant he had found himself wanting to know more about her and he had found himself feeling attracted to her and he really wasn’t looking for another relationship.  
He had enjoyed dating Jane, they had shared meals and evenings at the pub as well as evenings in front of the television at either of their homes and there had been sex. But he hadn’t felt the need to expand on what they had and when Jane had pushed him for more, he had recoiled and they had started arguing. Then Jane had been involved in a hostage situation and the relationship picked up again, but they were soon arguing again and Alec decided enough was enough, he couldn’t give her what she wanted and they had separated. He knew that she was happy in her new relationship with a police officer but he hadn’t been keen to repeat the experience himself, until Lara Westwell had walked into his life he hadn’t thought about women.

Lara had fitted into the team well and Paul, Jane and Naz had all reported back to Alec that she was highly competent and was never fazed by the challenges she faced aspart of the HEMS team. In fact her quick thinking had helped to save a woman’s life as Lara noticed that the lady who was initially though to be uninjured was becoming increasingly erratic at the scene of a car crash. On re-examination the lady was found to have unequal pupils and was brought to the hospital by the air ambulance where a CT scan of her head showed a large bleed at the front of her brain. She was now recovering in the intensive care unit after surgery to drain the bleed. Lara Westwell was here to stay for now and that was becoming increasingly uncomfortable for Alec Track as he didn’t know how to behave around her without acknowledging that he was experiencing feeling for her. 

Alec decided that he should work with Lara, he was missing the hands on as he had increasingly staying in the office to avoid being near her and Paul had commented on this only yesterday. It might stop him thinking about her, he had thought avoidance was the key but when she was out with one of the others he was wondering if she was OK. As the team settled down with coffee’s for the morning briefing Alec took a deep breath and went through the task allocation for the day.  
As Alec announced that he would fly with Naz and Lara as back up he noticed Lara’s smile and Paul’s wink and wondered if he had made a mistake.

Friday evening was quickly upon Lara, she had dashed home from work to start cooking with the others all expected at 7pm. The past three days had all been relatively quiet and the team had only been called out four times in the three days. Lara had gone over to A&E on Wednesday afternoon to help out with minor injuries as there had been no call outs for the team that day, so she hadn’t yet flown with Alec.  
Jane was the first to arrive at Lara’s flat just before 7pm and she offered a bunch of yellow and orange freesias and carnations. “They had to be orange because of the uniform” Jane joked.

Paul and Naz arrived soon after bringing beers and wine. The beers were quickly opened and Lara poured herself and Jane a glass wine from a bottle in the fridge and put the new bottle in to chill.

“You know Alec won’t be on time” announced Jane. “If its work related he’ll be there but anything social and his time keeping is appalling.”  
“Really” Lara responded “that does surprise me, he seems so meticulous.”  
The others laughed, but then all looked at each other as the doorbell rung at 2 minutes past seven. Lara opened the door to find Alec standing there holding two bottles of wine and a box of chocolate mints. He was dressed in a lilac shirt and black jeans with a black leather jacket and she could smell that he was freshly showered. She smiled and welcomed him in taking the wine and chocolates from him.  
Lara offered him a drink and Alec took a beer and joined the other in the sitting room as she finished the salad to accompany the lasagne. She could hear them others asking if Alec was OK as he was on time and she could hear the love and respect they had for each other as they continued to joke. She hoped that she would truly fit into the team as she was enjoying the job, the move although made under stressful circumstances had certainly done her the world of good.

CHAPTER 6

Three hours later they had eaten all of the lasagne, garlic bread and salad that Lara had made and the raspberry flan with home made ice cream that she had produced for dessert and the beer and wine had also been drunk. The chocolate mints Alec had brought had also been devoured. Jane was the first to leave, just after 10pm as her boyfriend had just finished work and she was going to meet him. Paul and Naz also decided to leave asking Alec if he wanted to join them for a quick drink in a nearby pub. Alec declined suggesting that he was going to head home for an early night, something he rarely had.

“Do you need a hand clearing up before I leave?” he enquired as Lara said goodbyes to Paul and Naz at the door.  
“No it’s fine, not a lot to do really, just a few plates and dishes which I think can wait until the morning” she replied as she shut the front door. “Can I get you another coffee before you go?”  
“That would be nice, if it isn’t any trouble”  
“No trouble at all, I was going to have another anyway so I might as well make two” Lara grinned and Alec found himself smiling back. He should have just left but he had enjoyed being in Lara’s company this evening and he didn’t want to leave her just yet.  
“Go and sit down on the sofa, I’ll bring it through” Lara instructed.  
Alec made his way into the sitting room and sat down on the sofa stretching his legs out in front of him. Lara joined him a couple of minutes later carrying two cups of steaming coffee. She sat down on the other end of the sofa and sighed kicking off her shoes.  
Alec laughed “Sore feet?”  
“Just a bit” she answered as she picked up her left foot and started to rub it.  
Alec picked up his coffee and took a mouthful of the hot liquid, watching Lara rubbing her foot was making his groin tighten. How could something so innocent make him feel aroused?

Lara put her foot back on the floor and picked up her own mug of coffee. She was about to take a mouthful when the telephone on the table beside her rang. Lara started at the sound spilling the beverage over her left leg. She yelped and jumped to her feet depositing the mug onto the table, the ringing phone forgotten.  
“Are you OK? Alec asked with concern.  
Lara ran to her bedroom where she quickly removed her black linen trousers to reveal a red area where the liquid had landed. Lara grabbed her dressing gown, put it on and made her way to her bathroom to apply cold water to the scald. She sat on the side of her bath and used the shower nozzle to apply cold water to her leg for 10 minutes. 

As she made her way back towards her bedroom she caught a movement out of the corner of her eye and remembered that Alec was in her sitting room. She made her way over and found that he was sponging the sofa where she had spilt the coffee. He had also wiped the table where she had spilt liquid when she had put her mug down.

“OK? Nothing serious I hope” Alec raised his eyebrows questioningly.  
“No I got the cold water on fairly quickly, just a minor scald, no blisters” Lara replied.  
“I should go” Alec pointed at the door. “Thank you for a really lovely evening, I’m glad someone on the team can cook” he joked.  
Lara followed Alec to the door. “I’m glad you enjoyed it, it wasn’t anything special really but everyone has made me really welcome and I just wanted to say thank you for that.”  
They reached the door, as Lara reached past Alec to open the door he turned to face her. Although it didn’t touch him her right arm was now around Alec’s left side. Lara looked up into Alec’s eyes and was shocked to see they were as full of desire as her own were. She had thought about Alec’s body since the night of her near miss accident when she had clung to him and sobbed. She wanted to know a lot more about Alec Track, one of the youngest HEMS consultant’s in the country but she was also wary of getting attached to anyone again, once bitten, twice shy. She couldn’t face having her heart broken again and she really didn’t want to move again because of a man.  
Bits of information Jane had shared with her about her relationship with Alec filtered into her head and she thought about how well they still worked together, always the professionals that they were. Perhaps she could take a chance on Alec Track because if it went wrong she could be professional too when it came to work.

Lara blinked and as she opened her eyes she was sure Alec’s face was closer to hers than it had been a few seconds before. She stood up on her tiptoes as Alec lowered his mouth to hers. The initial contact was brief but sent a spark of desire racing around Lara’s body. Alec’s lips were warm and demanding but he broke away and muttered “sorry, I shouldn’t have done that.” He looked at the floor.  
“I’m not sorry” Lara answered and put her left hand behind his head to guide him back down to her mouth. Alec didn’t resist and their lips met again in hungry need. He pulled her to him and parted her lips with his tongue to explore the warmth of her mouth. Lara moaned into Alec’s mouth as he ran his left hand up and down her spine. Both were breathing hard when the kiss ended.  
“Don’t go Alec, stay with me?” Lara beseeched. Alec wanted to decline unsure where this was going and whether it was a good idea for him to pursue it, but then she said “please” and he was unable to decline.

“This really isn’t a good idea” he said as his mouth lowered to hers again.  
“I know” she replied against his lips as her hands started to undo the buttons on his shirt.  
Alec picked Lara up easily and started to move back towards the sitting room with her. As they got to the bedroom door Lara broke the kiss and said “Bedroom” and tilted her head towards the door. Alec lowered her to the floor and she opened the door and then took his hand to lead him in. A single lamp beside the bed lit the room.  
Lara turned to face Alec again and placed kisses across his chest now that she had his shirt open. She licked a nipple, Alec hissed out a breath and lifted her head to capture her lips again. He untied the belt around her dressing gown and pushed it to the floor. Breaking the kiss he looked down and noticed the red mark on her left leg where she had scalded herself. She was right, it was minor and he had heard the water running to know she had doused it with water well. He knelt to the floor and gently placed kisses around the red mark whilst running his hands up and down the backs of her legs. Lara sighed contentedly, Alec Track most definitely had clever hands her nerve endings were on edge and her whole body tingled with anticipation. A loud groan escaped her mouth as Alec’s hands reached the top of her thighs and cupped her bottom, her black lace panties a barrier between her skin and his.

Alec laughed and stood up again. He lifted her black sweater over her head to leave her standing before him in her black lace underwear. Lara caught the smirk on Alec’s face and enquired mischievously “what’s the matter doctor?”

Alec grinned in return and responded “nurses and black lace go together like fish and chips.”  
Lara laughed out loud.  
Alec moved Lara backwards until her legs touched the side of the bed as they kissed again. His shirt hit the floor and she ran her hands over the planes and contours of his back before moving her hands around to his belt buckle. She started to undo the buckle when she felt his erection pulse beneath her hand and a thought entered her head.  
“Ummmm Alec” she announced.  
“Yes Lara” he replied whilst kissing the delicate skin below her ear and jaw.  
“Ummmm, before we go much further, do you have any contraceptives with you because I don’t.”  
Alec stopped kissing her and looked at her as if she had thrown cold water over him.  
“Good point” was his response. He reached into the pocket at the back of his jeans and pulled out his wallet. With a grin he produced a condom, and said “I was a scout, I am always prepared.”

Lara smiled back and returned her hands to his belt buckle, whilst Alec reached behind her and unfastened her bra.  
Lara pushed Alec’s jeans and boxer-shorts down freeing his erection as her bra fell to the floor and Alec took a rosy nipple into his mouth, their hands continuing to explore each other’s bodies with urgency.  
Alec kicked off his shoes and stepped out of his clothing. Within seconds they were lying on her bed. Alec sat up and pulled his socks off throwing them onto the floor with the rest of his clothes, before turning to gaze at Lara.  
“You are beautiful” he declared and started to place tender hungry kisses on the soft skin of her throat before trailing down her body. Lara writhed beneath Alec. He dipped his tongue into her navel making her giggle before encountering the band of her panties. He hooked his fingers into the band and slid her panties down her legs throwing them onto the floor. Alec ran his hands back up her legs to cup her bottom. Again he greedily took a pink nipple into his mouth laving it with his tongue. Lara ran her fingers through Alec’s hair before pulling him back up to her mouth. She then released her hold on his head to place his erection between her palms which she slowly ran up and down the length of him.  
Alec’s left hand had worked its way back down her body and was now probing the apex of her thighs. His fingers stroked her slow and gently, she was wet and ready for him. Alec’s tongue darted in and out of her mouth mimicking the actions another part of his body desired to be doing. Alec grabbed the condom he had found in his wallet and torn open the packet. He sheathed himself before returning his hand to her feminine place and his mouth to hers. He lifted his head a fraction and looked into her eyes which now looked smoky and sultry.  
“Are you sure you want this?”  
“Yes, I’m sure, make love to me Alec” Lara purred in response.

He wasn’t going to ask twice, Alec guided his erection to the glistening entrance of her feminine core and pushed himself in. Lara gasped as Alec stretched and filled her, before taking his mouth again. He moved slowly at first and Lara’s hands explored Alec’s back at a leisurely pace as there mouths continued wet seeking kisses with Lara darting her tongue into Alec’s mouth at times. His thumb rubbed over an erect nipple and Lara experience the stirring of a familiar sensation as if a thread pulsed between her breast, belly and most intimate feminine area. She moaned, urging Alec to increase the tempo of the rhythm he was setting. Rocking her hips against the cradle of his, Lara sighed and moaned as Alec continued to plunge in and out, all she could feel was him inside her and the sensations this was causing. Lara couldn’t keep her eyes open as an orgasm overwhelmed her, she ran her fingers up and down Alec’s back and as her orgasm subsided Alec cried out her name as he reached his own climax.

CHAPTER 7

Lara lay with her head on Alec’s chest, the pair of them completely silent until Alec asked “would you like me to leave?”  
She lifted her head to look at him and answered “not if you don’t want to but I understand if you need to go.”  
Alec placed a gentle kiss on her forehead and whispered “ssshhhhhh, it’s OK” whilst running his hand up and down her arm. He should go, he shouldn’t have made love to Lara but he had wanted to and now he didn’t want to leave her. He wasn’t working tomorrow so there was no reason for him to leave other than his own vow not to let love get in the way of his career, he wasn’t sure what he felt about Lara but this felt different to what he had felt for Jane. He didn’t know what was happening, what he was feeling but it couldn’t be good, could it?

He woke the next morning to find Lara in the circle of his arms, he could tell she was already awake.  
“Morning” he rumbled letting go of her and rolling onto his back to stretch. He felt incredibly well rested considering that they had explored each others bodies again during the night pleasuring each other through oral sex. He looked at the clock and noticed it was just after 8:40am much later than he would usually be in bed even on a day off. He liked to go out for a run in a local park when he could and it was usually on his days off that he would manage to do that, so he would be out bright and early whether rain or shine and would run for up to an hour depending on his mood.

Lara remained on her left side with her back to Alec. She didn’t recognise the woman who had asked him to stay with her last night, she’d never asked a man to stay with her and had always been more cautious about sleeping with someone than she had with Alec. Usually she was dating someone for at least three months before she was ready to move the relationship on to sex. She didn’t know how he was going to react to her now, and she was worried about where they were going next. She wasn’t sure she was ready for another relationship, not yet anyway, but how did she tell him that?

“Do you mind if I take a shower?”  
Alec’s voice broke into her thoughts. “No go ahead, help yourself, there should be towels in the cupboard under the sink” she squeaked.  
She felt Alec move to the edge of the bed and then stand. Unashamed of his body he moved to pick up his clothes and his wallet that lay on the floor where they had been dropped in the heat of their passion. He took them into the en-suite bathroom.

Lara waited until she could hear the shower running before she jumped out of bed and picked up her dressing gown to cover herself. She padded out to the kitchen and cleared the plates and dishes from the night before into the dishwasher and sink before she made a pot of coffee, placed mugs, cereal, bowls, spoons and milk on to the table along with plates, knives and an assortment of toppings for toast. She was cutting slices off of a loaf of wholemeal bbread when Alec walked into the kitchen freshly showered.  
“Coffee and cereal on the table, and I’m just about to cook toast” Lara declared.  
“Thanks” he poured a mug of coffee and sat on a chair at the table. He noticed the remnants of last night’s meal had been removed and was also acutely aware that something was bothering Lara, he suspected she was regretting sleeping with him although she had been the one who had asked him to stay.

She placed the slices of bread under the grill and then sat on a chair opposite Alec and poured herself a mug of coffee. She took a sip and cleared her throat whilst trying to think of something to say. Alec beat her to it.  
“Do you regret last night Lara” he asked with concern.  
She looked up startled at the question.  
“No, no not at all” she replied surprised that he could ask her that. “I just don’t usually behave like that, I’m not as forward as I was last night. I’ve never asked a man I don’t know that well to stay the night, I’ve never asked a man to make love to me” she sighed. “I don’t know the woman that I was last night.”  
“Would it help you to know that I behaved out of character too?”  
She looked up into his blue eyes dazed that he was feeling as unsure as she was.  
“I’m sure you have heard that Jane and I were dating for a while” he took a mouthful of coffee. “I am a workaholic, I had to be to get where I am today. I thought that dating a colleague would be the answer for me. I thought she would understand that work is my priority.”

The smell of the bread toasting interrupted the flow of the conversation, Lara turned the bread under the grill then sat again.  
“At first we had fun together, we went for drinks after work, meals, the usual and soon we were staying at each other’s flats a couple of nights a week. But then Jane wanted more of a commitment from me. She wanted us to move in together and I wasn’t willing to commit to that. We started arguing and I concentrated more on work again. I found myself spending time with a patient we brought in without any ID who was in a coma in ITU.”

Lara retrieved the toast from under the grill and placed it on the table. She took a piece and buttered it for herself.  
“So you ended the relationship then?”  
Alec shook his head. “I was thinking about it when the team was called out to a routine RTA. Naz and I went out and discovered that there was what we thought was a separate incident in a nearby pub, a stabbing. Paul and Jane came out to help and went to the pub to deal with that incident. But the two incidents were related as the group of lads who had caused the car to crash had stabbed the barman and had the barmaid held hostage upstairs. To cut the story short, Jane ended up upstairs with two of the lads and was held hostage. We got her out but I couldn’t end it then and things were better between us for a while. But then we returned to the arguing and we talked it though and agreed to call it a day.”

Alec helped himself to a slice of toast and covered it in butter. He took a bite.  
“I don’t usually jump into bed at every opportunity. I take my job very seriously and I don’t want to throw away all of the work and effort I have put in to get here because of a relationship. I hope you understand.”  
“I understand Alec, and as you know I’ve had my heart broken recently so I’m not exactly wanting to rush into another relationship. I don’t know why I asked you to stay last night but honestly I don’t regret it” Lara looked down and blushed.

Alec finished the slice of toast and licked his thumb. “I don’t want to forget last night because it was wonderful, but shall we just take a step back and see how things go?”  
Lara smiled at him, “sounds great to me, but just one thing” she said. “If anything does develop between us” she liked her bottom lip. “I don’t want it to interfere with our professional relationship as I couldn’t move again, so tell me now if we can’t be professional at work about this.”  
“I won’t let anything that develops between us affect our relationship at work” Alec chuckled. “Now I’ve got a nurse on my team I don’t want to lose her.”

Lara poured another coffee and lifted the pot towards Alec’s mug to ask if he wanted a refill. He pushed his mug towards her.  
“So what have you got planned for today then?” he asked.

CHAPTER 8

Alec returned to his flat after breakfast. He and Lara met again later that afternoon and strolled around a street market laughing and chatting together before enjoying a pizza at an Italian restaurant, after which Alec walked Lara home, kissed her and then returned to his own home for the night.  
He was on-call on Sunday so other than a short telephone call they didn’t speak to each other. 

Over the next couple of weeks the two of them continued to work amicably together, showing no signs to the others that there was anything between them other than a working relationship. They managed to go to the cinema one evening after work. On another evening when the team had been to the pub for drinks, after an especially stressful day they had returned to the Chinese restaurant where they had eaten after her first day on the team. They had also enjoyed a picnic in the park last Saturday afternoon that Alec had packed but had been unable to meet on Sunday as Lara was meeting her parents for dinner.  
They were starting to learn a lot about each other but had not slept together again, in fact they had avoided going to each others homes, but Alec would always walk Lara to her flat after their evening out, ensuring she got home safely. 

Despite her best efforts, Lara found she couldn’t forget the night that they had made love. Alec had been so gentle with her and she couldn’t remember when she had ever woken up to find herself being held. He had been so understanding that morning after, when she thought everything was going to fall apart for her a second time, just as she was starting to pick up the pieces of her life once more. She wondered whether she should be bold and ask him to stay again. However it wouldn’t be easy for either to stay at the other’s flat after work if they were expected at work again the next day and unfortunately she had made plans with her parents again this weekend. 

Alec caught her daydreaming in the office.  
“What are you thinking?” he whispered into her ear so that Paul, who was sat with his back to them on a sofa reading the local paper couldn’t hear them.  
Lara jumped at being caught but then smiled at Alec and whispered back “you’ll just have to wait and find out.”  
“Sounds interesting, I’ll look forward to that” 

The alarm sounded to indicate that the HEMS team was needed and Paul ran to pick up the phone and take the details of the incident. Kurt, Naz and Jane walked through the door at that point having gone to the canteen to pick up lunches. The polystyrene boxes containing a variety of meals were dropped onto the table as Kurt made his way to the helicopter to start making checks. Naz and Jane joined Lara who was grabbing the backpacks they carried from the racks whilst Alec joined Paul by the phone.

“OK everyone, change of plans, major incident” Alec declared holding a sheet of paper.  
“Major RTA on the motorway, the main incident is two cars and a lorry but a coach carrying schoolchildren has gone down the embankment trying to avoid the accident” he said calmly.  
“Paul and Naz take the car and meet us there, Jane and Lara you’ll fly with me in the helicopter. Is everyone clear on that?”  
A chorus of “yes boss” or “yes Alec” followed and everyone grabbed packs. As Lara followed Alec and Jane to the helicopter she could hear Naz and Paul arguing over who would drive and suppressed a giggle.

Alec gave more instructions on what he wanted from the team when they landed as they flew to the scene. Further information had been relayed to them en-route and they knew that the driver of one car had been fatally injured. The second car had three occupants who all remained trapped, Jane and Lara were to attend to them whilst Alec dealt with the lorry driver until Paul and Naz arrived. Jane asked about the coach and it’s passengers.  
“We’re not entirely sure” Alec replied earnestly “but first reports are that they are walking wounded.” He muttered something under his breath as the accident came into view. “The police are trying to get to the coach at the moment.”  
Lara looked out of the window to survey the scene below them on the motorway as Kurt flew over. He would land on the motorway which had been closed as a result of the incident.

She took a deep breath trying to clear her head of any thoughts other than the task ahead of her. Kurt landed and announced “nine minutes into the hour” referring to the initial hour following an incident known as the Golden Hour. The team endeavoured to return any patient to hospital within the Golden Hour to warrant the best chances of survival.

Lara followed Jane to a blue car that was surrounded by police officers and firemen. The front seat passenger had been released from the car by the fire brigade and was receiving treatment to a head wound from the paramedics who were already at the scene. The two remaining passengers would both need to be cut free from the car which was severely damaged on the driver’s side.  
Jane assessed the situation, both casualties were conscious and she asked Lara to talk with the rear seat passenger whilst she looked after the driver who appeared to be more seriously injured. 

“Hello, I’m Lara and we’re here to help you” she said to the passenger through the window that had been smashed in the accident. “What’s your name?”  
“Chris” the young man replied “can you help me? I can’t move my foot, I need to get out of here.”  
“It’s OK Chris, we’re going to get you out of here. We’re working as fast as we can” she answered. “Are you in pain?”  
Lara applied a dressing pad to a cut above Chris’s right eye and bandaged it in place as she waited for Chris to answer.  
“My neck hurts a bit but it’s my right leg that hurts the most and I can’t feel my foot.”  
“OK Chris, I’m going to try to look at your leg, I’m moving round to the other side of the car OK.”

He didn’t answer her, but she ran around the back of the car with her pack past firemen who were discussing how to proceed with safely extracting the two passengers.  
The rear passenger door was ajar but wouldn’t open any further. Lara couldn’t get her pack into the car so she removed a neck collar and squeezed her way into the car. She explained to Chris about the collar and sitting next to him quickly applied it to his neck to stop him from moving it too much in case of an injury. She then took a bottle of oxygen from her pack and applied the mask over Chris’s face explaining that it would help his breathing.  
Lara then advised Chris that she was going to look at his legs. She tried to look down but the damage to the car was making it difficult for her to see his legs easily. Lara slid back out of the car and grabbed a torch from her pack. She returned laying on her front on the seat beside Chris shining the torch down in the area of his legs and feet.  
In doing so it was obvious why Chris had pain in his right leg and couldn’t feel his foot. His right leg was clearly broken above the ankle and one of the bones was protruding through the skin.  
Lara spoke softly to Chris, again telling him everything would be alright but also telling him he had broken his leg and that she needed him to stay as still as possible whilst they worked to get him out.

She made her way out of the car again and saw that Paul and Naz had arrived and were with Alec. She ran over and explained Chris’s injury hoping that someone would advise her how to proceed. They were discussing the plan of action when the lead fire officer approached them.  
“Sorry to interrupt Alec, but we’ve got a problem” he announced. “There are thirty eight passengers on the coach plus the driver. Thirty five passengers and the driver are off and have minor injuries which the paramedics are dealing with.” He took a breath and looked towards the area of the coach which was on its side as a result of the accident. “Three passengers still on board, two children and a teacher, the teacher is OK but the two children are injured and need to be looked at.”  
“OK” Alec said “Naz, fancy a coach trip?”  
“That’s the thing” the fire officer interrupted “the coach isn’t safe, we need to get a line on it to secure it, it’s moved as the weight from inside has decreased, but it’s going to take a while to do that. One wrong move and it’s going even further down the embankment, we need to keep movement inside to a minimum.”

Alec swore. He looked at Naz but it was Lara who spoke. “I’ll go in, I’m smaller and lighter than you guys, if I can’t deal with the injuries we’ll have to reassess” she declared.  
Alec looked at her, he saw a brief flash of fear run across her eyes and was about to say no, but then he saw the determination too. They argued for several minutes but eventually Lara got the point across again that as the smallest she would have the least effect on the coach and he had to say OK.

CHAPTER 9

Lara listened to the instructions of the fire brigade as she made her way down the embankment to the coach. The front of the coach was facing up the embankment towards the motorway, its windscreen was missing and was her route of entry in. She crawled through and was handed her medical pack. She noticed the teacher first and then saw she was cradling a child’s head on her lap. She slowly made her way to the pair.  
“Hi I’m Lara, a nurse with the Helicopter Medical Team, how are you?”  
The teacher responded “I’m Liz, I’m OK. This is Luke he was knocked out in the accident, he has come round once and cried because his head and his tummy hurt.”  
Liz tilted her head backwards and whispered, “a bit further back is William, he is conscious and has been all the time. He has lower back pain and I think he has broken his leg.”  
“Are you OK for a second Liz whilst I go and see William?”  
Liz nodded.

Lara crawled slowly further into the coach and found William wedged between seats. She told him her name and asked where his pain was. When he had answered she used triangular bandages to carefully stabilise his injured leg. It looked like Liz was right and he had broken his left femur. She then explained that she was going to insert a needle into his arm so that she could give him something for the pain.  
William looked at Lara with tears in his eyes “OK.”  
“You are such a brave boy William” Liz called down the coach.  
Lara prepared the equipment she needed to insert an intravenous line into William’s hand.  
“How old are you William?” she asked.  
“Seven” he answered.  
“Wow, my nephew is nearly seven” she said. “He likes watching that programme with the talking dog, do you know the one I mean?”  
As William answered her she inserted the line into the back of his left hand. Mid sentence William realised what was happening and cried out a loud ouch.  
“All done” Lara smiled at him “you were very brave.”  
She drew up a small dose of morphine and administered it to William writing on the back of her gloved hand the time and dose she had given.

She told William she was going to check on Luke. She was pleased to see he had his eyes open when she returned to him, but he was pale and very sweaty, not a good sign at all. Lara examined Luke quickly, he had a small bump on the side of his head and was very tender on the left side of his abdomen. His pulse was strong but was faster than Lara would like. She looked at Liz and asked “do you think we can get him out between us? I want to get Luke looked at by one of our doctors.”  
Liz nodded but asked if William would be OK. Lara reassured her that he would be whilst they moved Luke.

Lara spoke softly to Luke telling him that they were going to get him off the coach now. She made her way carefully to the windscreen and called to a fireman.  
“What’s the situation? I need to get one of these children off and seen by a doctor I think he may have a ruptured spleen so he’s going to need surgery.”  
“We’re just attaching the lines we’ve tied to the coach to a couple of the engines on the road, everything should be secure in a couple of minutes.”  
“Can you see if one of my colleagues is free to look at this young man?” she asked. “And I’m going to need a spinal board for my other casualty if you could get one down here.” Lara smiled as the fireman responded with a “yes ma’am” she turned and moved back to Luke and Liz. 

“Are you OK William?” she called out. “We’ll have you out in a minute OK?”  
William shouted back that he was scared but OK.  
Lara looked at Liz. “I’m going to take Luke’s head from your lap and I’m going to support his head and back and make my way back down the coach to the windscreen. Can you lift and support his hips and legs and follow me down?”  
Liz nodded.  
Luke cried out in pain as Lara lifted him. She made her first shuffling movements towards the front of the coach when she heard a shout outside and felt the coach move a fraction. She stopped and looked at Liz mouthing OK. Paul shouted into the coach from outside.  
“Lara, are you OK?”  
“Yes we’re fine she shouted back, can we move?”  
“Slowly Lara, one of the ropes isn’t holding very well, but we need to get you out” Paul yelled.

Lara and Liz slowly inched there way along the coach to the windscreen. Lara felt a pair of hands around her waist as she reached the exit, Alec eased her out and he and Paul took Luke from them and placed him on a stretcher. She briefed them on her findings from examining Luke and started to climb back into the coach. Alec grabbed her.  
“Lara No, it’s not safe”  
“Alec there is a boy in here with a broken leg and possible back injury. I am not leaving him” she stared into his blue eyes with defiance. 

CHAPTER 10

Lara made her way back to William dragging a spinal board behind her. She had promised to get him and herself out as soon as she could. She could tell from the expressions on Paul and Alec’s faces that the coach was more of a problem than had originally been thought. She reached William and asked how his pain was.  
“Not as bad now, that stuff you gave me was cool” he giggled. The morphine was working. Lara told William how she was going to put him onto the board she had beside her to get him out of the coach. William wasn’t sure about that and it took Lara a few minutes to comfort William. Lara used the back of the coach seats in front of William to rest the spinal board in position ready to put it under him. She put a neck collar onto William, explaining that it would help stop his back going out of line when she moved him.

As Lara applied the collar, she caught the scent of petrol. She sat up and sniffed again, yes she could definitely smell petrol and it was getting stronger.  
She shouted up the coach “Alec.” She waited a few seconds before calling his name again. After calling his name a third time he appeared in her line of vision.  
“Problem?” he called back.  
“Has anyone checked the back of the coach recently? It’s just I can smell fuel”  
Alec swore and yelled at the fire officer.  
Lara informed William she was putting him onto the board now and once he was safely strapped on they would make there way out.  
She carefully rolled William onto his right side supporting him as much as she could against her body and pulled the board behind his back before lowering them together on to the floor. Carefully she centralised him on the spinal board. Alec shouting at her prevented her from securing the first strap. She looked up towards the voice.

“Its leaking fuel and quite rapidly, how quickly can you get out of there?”  
“I’m just applying the straps, a couple of minutes” she replied.  
“I’m coming in” he called  
Before Lara could say anything to stop him, Alec was by her side with Naz and several firemen outside the coach shouting at him. Between them they quickly strapped William to the board.  
“OK I’ll go first and pull the board from the head end, you push from the bottom” Alec instructed.  
Lara nodded. They started to move William towards the front of the coach.  
“Not far William, nearly out” Lara offered as they moved.  
They were nearing their exit when they heard lots of shouting outside. Naz appeared and with urgency said “come on Guys, one of the ropes is giving we need you out.”  
With a final push Alec had reached the windscreen. “I’ll climb out and then we’ll take the stretcher.” He jumped down shouting for help to get the stretcher out.  
Lara leaned forward to look into William’s eyes. “We’re out” she smiled.  
“Push the stretcher forward Lara” Alec called. With all her strength Lara pushed and the stretcher barely moved. She pushed again and again until she felt that the top end had been grabbed by various waiting hands. The stretcher moved the rest of the way out of the coach.

Lara collapsed into a heap, the efforts she had made pushing the stretcher finally taking their toll.  
“Come on Lara” called Alec. Lara pushed herself up and crawled the last couple of metres to the windscreen. She reached out a hand, her fingertips touching Alec’s when there was a loud creak and one of the ropes holding the coach snapped. The coach moved under Lara as she let out a scream. She went to cover her head with her hands but found she couldn’t move her arms and she felt like she was flying. She opened her eyes to see blue eyes staring at her as Alec pulled her close to him. Lara clung to him shaking. 

Lara insisted she didn’t need to be taken back to the hospital in an ambulance and that she wasn’t injured, just a bit shaken. She took her seat in the helicopter. Alec hadn’t really spoken to her since he had held her after pulling her from the coach apart from suggesting she was checked over. Jane joined her and told her that Chris and the driver from the car had both been taken to hospital but would both be OK. Luke had been flown to hospital by Kurt accompanied by Paul who had stayed with him at the hospital whilst Kurt returned. William was about to go off in a land ambulance. Alec’s voice over the radio informed Kurt to leave as he would return in the car with Naz.  
“OK ladies, let’s head back, helmets on and buckle up” Kurt instructed.

Lara remained silent for the journey back, she felt cold and shaky and knew she was in shock. She had known the risks she was taking in getting into the coach but something didn’t feel right to her and she couldn’t understand the feelings she was experiencing.  
When they landed she climbed out of the helicopter and said she was going for a shower.  
She removed her orange flight suit and immediately noticed the bruising along her right arm that must have happened as she was pulled out of the coach by Alec. She removed her t-shirt and underwear and stepping under the warm spray of the shower. Lara washed her hair before the shock of the incident overwhelmed her and she burst into tears.

Lara stood under the shower for several minutes allowing her tears to run freely. She couldn’t understand why she had cried so much in the past few months, she didn’t usually give into feminine emotions but it was all she had seemed to do since she had found her fiancé and best friend in bed together. She took three deep breaths and told herself to stop it she was stronger than this.

Her tears stopped and Lara turned the shower off. She still couldn’t shake the feeling she had, but she wasn’t going to cry anymore. She was drying herself when she heard Alec’s voice in the office. He sounded different, he was usually calm and controlled but he sounded desperate. He banged on the door.  
“Lara, are you OK” he demanded.  
“I’m OK Alec, I’ll be out in a minute.” She took another breath she was not going to cry and then she realised what the feeling was that she was experiencing. She was in love with Alec Track and she hadn’t told him.  
She sat on the bench, realisation dawning that she had fallen in love with Alec Track on first sight. She needed to tell him, but wasn’t sure how he would react. If she told him tonight he may think it was her experience today talking but this couldn’t wait she had to tell him.

Alec had driven back desperate to see Lara. When he had held her after pulling her from the coach he had felt genuine fear that he may have lost her but it wasn’t the feeling he’d had when Jane had been held hostage and there had been a possibility she would be injured or even killed. This had been different. Naz had asked if he was OK and he had snapped at him. Naz had only laughed before asking Alec if he loved Lara. Alec had stopped the car and looked at Naz for several seconds before he had bowed his head and said “Yes”.  
Naz had offered advice throughout the rest of the journey back but Alec had ignored him. He needed to see Lara and tell her how he felt.

Lara walked out of the ladies changing room and Jane excused herself to freshen up. Naz did the same and headed to the men’s changing room. Paul was still in A&E having not yet returned and Kurt was completing the post flight helicopter checks. Lara and Alec were alone.  
Lara looked at Alec. “Hey I didn’t thank you for pulling me out of there today” she offered as an opening sentence.  
“No worries, I would have done it for any of the team” he returned.  
“But I was the one silly enough to take the risk, even arguing with you”  
“Hmmmmm, I need to talk to you about that”  
“Sorry” Lara interrupted “but I wasn’t leaving those children in the coach. I know we have procedures to follow and I didn’t follow them today but I’m glad I didn’t as we got everyone out.”

Alec stopped her in her tracks with a kiss.  
Lara looked at him startled “what if someone had seen?”  
“I’d have said you kissed me out of gratitude for rescuing you.”  
Lara tried to look indignant but ended up laughing.  
“Now about arguing with me, I don’t think arguing is good for our relationship. Constructive discussion is a better term, don’t you think although I hope there won’t be much of that either.”  
“Constructive discussion” Lara queried before realising that Alec had said “our relationship.”  
Alec watched as understanding dawned on Lara. He grinned at her.  
“It’s probably too soon for you to hear this, but I’m saying it because I thought I might lose you today” Alec declared. He cleared his throat before saying “Lara, I love you.”  
“You love me?”  
“Yes, I know we haven’t known each other for very long, but I think I love you. I hope you’ll let us see where our relationship goes.”

Lara flung her arms around Alec and kissed him.  
“I told you my reason’s for moving here” she started, “but I’m glad my fiancé cheated on me because I now realise I didn’t love him. I thought I did, but I didn’t because you know why Alec Track?”  
Alec shook his head.  
“I love you that’s why” Lara announced “and I was shocked by the thought that I nearly didn’t get to tell you.”

Alec smiled at Lara. He looked at the clock, “time we weren’t here, what do you want to do?”  
Lara grinned back. “I told you before that you’re the only man I’ve asked to make love to me, so I’m asking again.” Lara swallowed, “Alec Track come home with me and make love to me.”  
Alec didn’t need asking twice.

EPILOGUE

Six months later  
Lara stared at the letter in her hand and read it again. She wasn’t surprised by the content but still she sighed. She couldn’t believe that she had been here in London for nearly a year.  
Alec came out of her bedroom having showered, a towel wrapped around his hips.  
“Hey, why do you look so glum?” he demanded taking the mug from her hand to taking a mouthful of the warm brown liquid.  
Lara looked up at the sound of his voice. “Letter from my landlord, I can rent this place for another year” she stated. Alec put the mug down and placed his arms around her waist from behind and rested his chin on her shoulder. “That’s good, but you don’t seem happy about it.”  
“Well, he wants to put the rent up by an extra thirty pounds a month which doesn’t sound a lot but will stretch my wages” she grumbled. 

Alec kissed the sensitive spot under her right ear making her giggle and squirm in his arms.  
“There is an answer to that” he said between kisses. “You could move in with me.”  
Lara stopped wriggling, and turned to stare at Alec. “Move in with you, are you serious?”  
“Yes, I’m serious, you can move in with me for now and then we can find our own place together.” He placed his hands on either side of her face and looked into her eyes.  
“I really do love you Lara Westwell, and I want to be with you” he smiled. “In fact in six months you have made me realise that there is more to life than work. I’m hoping that you can help me discover even more joys of life as we grow old together.”  
Lara kissed Alec on the lips and smiled. “Oh I’m sure there is plenty I can show you” she purred “starting with this” and she pulled the towel from his hips and ran towards the bedroom, giggling. Alec caught her quickly and pulled her against his muscular body.  
“So are you going to move in with me or not?” he demanded.  
“Hmmmmm, I need to think about that” she answered with a serious expression on her face, whilst in her head she had already made a decision.  
“Really, do I need to help you think” Alec placed soft butterfly kisses on her jaw line.  
“That’s not helping me think” she sighed.  
“Just give me an answer” he demanded, continuing to kiss her throat.  
Lara pushed him away and said “OK I’ve made a decision.” She looked at the floor before returning her gaze to his face.  
“It’s a big step for me to move in with you Alec.” A look of dismay glanced across his face at her words, fearing she was going to turn him down. He started to speak but Lara placed a finger against his lips to quieten him.  
“But it is a step I’m willing to take with you, yes Alec I will move in with you.”

They looked at each other and then both broke into huge grins. Alec picked Lara up with ease and twirled her around until she demanded he stop. He took her mouth with his and kissed her for what felt like an eternity. He had been a workaholic but his work had led him to the woman who made him happy and he was determined to do all that he could to make her as happy as he was.


End file.
